


Collared

by Nekhoema



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Blood and Injury, Fluff, M/M, Neko!Akaashi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-12
Updated: 2016-04-12
Packaged: 2018-06-01 20:14:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6534811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nekhoema/pseuds/Nekhoema
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bokuto disappears during a party he and Kuroo are attending together. Kuroo panics and drags Kenma to look for him. When they eventually locate him, they discover that he isn't alone.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Collared

"Tetsurou, can we go home now? I'm tiiiiired!"  
Kuroo rolled his eyes to the ceiling as his boyfriend's voice wailed right in his eardrum, effectively deafening him to everything but the grey-haired man's baritone. Across the hall, Tsukishima Kei was staring at them. Kuroo tried desperately to communicate his discomfort with a pleading look, but Tsukishima just smirked and turned away, leaving Kuroo to fend for himself (and a very intoxicated Bokuto Koutarou). Kuroo swung around to face his petulant partner and managed to catch him just before he careened into Yachi Hitoka from Karasuno, who realised the danger a second before he did and scurried away, face burning.

"Bokuto, you were the one who was so insistent on coming to this gathering. We don't even speak to half these people anymore. The least you could do was be a little dignified." Kuroo's voice was clipped, if not outright annoyed, and even through his haze of drunken exhaustion Bokuto could see he'd pissed him off.

"I'm... *hic* sorry, Tetsurou. I didn't mean to upset you." Bokuto's golden orbs were starting to widen even more than usual and swimming with unshed tears, and Kuroo's own piercing ones filled with panic. He could handle angry Bokuto, frustrated Bokuto, even over-excited Bokuto; but he just didn't know how to deal with sad Bokuto.

"Hey, come on. It's okay. I apologise for snapping at you. We'll leave in a second, just let me find Kenma, alright?" He was gruff, pecking his boyfriend on the cheek and leading him over to a green couch in the corner of the room, a room that was far too small for the gathering that was taking place. They had to fight their way through a lot of bodies to claim the seat, but they managed it.

"Stay here, Bokuto. I mean it. Don't wander off." Kuroo's face was completely serious as he met Bokuto's eyes, and Bokuto nodded enthusiastically in response.

Kuroo smiled genuinely and leaned down to brush his lips against Bokuto's before cheekily bringing Bokuto's bottom lip into his own mouth and biting it gently. Then he hurried off to find the tiny pudding-cup who had vanished earlier in the night to find Hinata Shouyou.

******************************

It took about 15 minutes, but eventually Kuroo found Kenma and started leading him back toward where he remembered he'd left Bokuto. Kenma had been reluctant to leave, at first, but seeing as he was relying heavily on Kuroo for transportation, he didn't raise much of a fuss. He smiled, a small quirk of the lips, at Hinata, waving goodbye, before following his much taller best friend to the troublemaker. Except... He wasn't there.

Kuroo had stopped dead, his eyes trained heavily on the spot where he knew he'd left Bokuto, and growled under his breath before punching a cushion.

"I knew I shouldn't have fucking left him alone! God, I'm such an idiot! Who knows where he's gone?"

"Calm down, Kuroo. Let's find him before you start panicking." Kenma's voice was soft and lilting as he put a calming hand on his friend's shoulder. He felt vulnerable, almost like a lone flower swaying lazily in the winds heralding an approaching storm.

His gesture seemed to work. Kuroo visibly relaxed, taking a deep breath before opening his mouth again. "I'm just really worried about him, Kenma. Last time he pulled a vanishing act like this, we didn't find him for two hours. He got in a fight and we found him in his bed after searching for so long. He'd just, fallen asleep? Injured? He scared me so badly and he still seems to think that's amusing and makes light of it. I don't know what to do with him."

Kenma remembered that. Kuroo had been frantic, calling him at 2 AM saying that Bokuto had disappeared from the nightclub they'd gone to together and earlier in the night two other guys had tried to hit on him and were gone too. Well, it turns out they'd steered Bokuto outside after they'd insulted Kuroo, and they'd gotten in a fight. Bokuto had won, because OF COURSE he had, but not without a concussion, fractured ribs and a cracked collarbone. He'd simply walked home and passed out like he didn't even notice. It was actually a little frightening.

"Okay, Kuroo. Let's go. How about you get Tsukishima to keep an eye on your car, and you and I go out to look for him?"

"No way. I'm not putting you in danger just to save Bokuto's worthless hide. We'll go in my car, but we'll drive around the neighbourhood slowly while we search. God, I'm so sick of him doing this all the time!"

Kenma dipped his head in assent and they made their way out of the building, resigned to look for the stupid owl for as long as they needed to. In the end, they wouldn't have to search very long at all.

Kuroo suddenly lifted a hand, forcing Kenma to stop dead. Annoyed, Kenma let out a huff, ready to voice a complaint, but his throat clamped down on the words when he caught the expression on Kuroo's face. It was filled with fear.

He turned to Kenma. "Did you hear that? Please, tell me you heard that and know which direction it came from, because fuck, that sounded like an angry Bokuto but I can't fucking see him, where is he?"

Kenma shook his head no. "I didn't hear anything, Kuroo. Please calm down." Kenma was beginning to feel like a broken record.

Kuroo was shaking. "I need to find him, where is he?" Just as he finished the sentence, another muffled yell split the air, filled with fury and what sounded like... pain?

Kuroo had realised it too and suddenly appeared in front of Kenma, placing both hands on his shoulders. "Go back inside." He said, his tone flat and expressionless, his eyes blank. Kenma shivered. Kuroo was still trembling. Kenma shook his head no, determined to stay by his friend's side, and Kuroo tutted. "Fucking hell, FINE. But stay close to me. I mean it Kenma."

Kenma nodded furiously and Kuroo took off, catching him off guard. He'd forgotten just how fast Kuroo could be, especially under pressure, and he was already struggling to catch up. Noticing this, Kuroo swore loudly and whisked Kenma up into his arms. Kenma gasped gently at being swung up off the ground, but he didn't voice any other complaints, instead just hanging on for dear life as they followed the distant sounds of shouting and... was that flesh hitting flesh?

Kuroo was panting as they swung around a corner into an alleyway, and even Kenma's blood ran cold at the sight they were greeted with.

Bokuto was pinned to the floor, his body trying in vain to protect itself as his stomach was stomped on repeatedly by a man. Three others were also involved in the assault, two pinning down his limbs and a third covering his mouth to muffle his shouts of pain and anger. Despite all this, Bokuto's eyes held no fear in them. Instead, they were defiant as he endured their attack, and Kenma's belly twisted. Bokuto's face was marred with various injuries and he looked like he was on the verge of passing out, even as he struggled furiously against their grips on him.

He turned to Kuroo, wanting to counsel diplomacy as they were very outnumbered, but he was no longer there. His heart sank as he turned back to the horrific scene before them.

Kuroo had thrown himself into the man hurting his boyfriend with a scream of fury and tackled him to the ground, punching him once in the face before swinging a fist into the jaw of the one pinning down Bokuto's legs. The two men left were frozen in shock as Kuroo unleashed all his frustration and fear on their companions, and when he began to approach them, growling like a rabid animal, they released Bokuto and sprinted away down the alley. The second man Kuroo had attacked made his way to his feet ungainly and also stumbled off. The first, well, he was out cold and probably would be for a while, not that any of them gave a shit.

Bokuto was groaning now, and he'd curled up onto his side in a ball to protect his injured stomach. He'd begun to tremble violently. Kuroo was still recovering from his exertion, so Kenma approached Bokuto instead.

"Bokuto, hey. Are you alright? It's Kenma. Kuroo's here too. We've come to help you. Can you sit up?"

Bokuto's gaze was bleary with agony and some exhaustion as he struggled into a sitting position, leaning heavily against the wall. By this point Kuroo had recovered and was by his boyfriend's side in an instant, cradling his face gently.

"Hey baby. Are you alright? Talk to me darling. Where does it hurt?"

Bokuto chuckled roughly. "Everywhere. Don't... Don't think I can walk."

Kuroo looked troubled. "I can't carry you. You're too heavy. You have to try, okay? Fuck, Bokuto. Why didn't you just stay put?" In his periphery he could see Kenma whispering into his phone urgently, and wondered who he had contacted.

"Went... went to take a leak. Heard fighting. A scream. I thought maybe that some guys had caught a woman alone and were harassing her, but it wasn't a woman. It was..." At this point Bokuto's eyes rolled in his head and he slumped over in Kuroo's arms. Alarmed, Kuroo tried desperately to rouse him, but it was no use. Panicking now, his eyes darted around the alley uncertainly. They couldn't stay here. Then, all of a sudden, his gaze landed on something very unusual.

In the corner of the small side street, pressed up against a garbage bin, was a person. He was wide-eyed, frozen in shock and terror as his black eyes met Kuroo's own piercing ones, and his chest was rising and falling rapidly. His hair was messy and long, and very dark, and from what Kuroo could see he was EXTREMELY emaciated. His limbs were stick thin, his cheeks hollow, dark shadows under his eyes and bruises and cuts marring most of his body. But what was most astonishing was... he had ears. Two, furry ears poking out through the shaggy mane on his head. And when Kuroo's eyes dropped to the floor, he saw a tail twitching in agitation.

Completely paralysed with shock, Kuroo laid Bokuto down against the wall and began to slowly approach the stranger, holding his hands up, trying to placate the obviously terrified person before him.

"Hello. My name is Kuroo Tetsurou, and the man on the phone is Kenma Kozume. The person on the ground is Bokuto Koutarou. Do you know what happened here? Did you see anything? I promise I won't harm you, I just need to know why I just found my boyfriend being attacked in a dingy alleyway."

Kuroo's voice had been stable at first, but it began to rise as everything caught up with him in a rush.

The other male was still very still, and Kuroo had almost given up on him ever speaking, when he opened his mouth. His voice was cracked with disuse and fear. "Bokuto... I was being hurt. By those men. One of them owned me. He was my master, and I his slave. But something I did displeased him, so he had me thrown out on the street. He chains me here with a collar and lead for punishment. I don't mind, I deserve it. Master came back with his friends, and they started to undress me. That's when Bokuto heard what was happening and rushed in. He saved me. But they overpowered him. And... that's why he was being hurt. I'm sorry. It was my fault. Are you my Master now?"

Kuroo listened to the other man with steadily growing disbelief and fear. Surprisingly, the terror he felt wasn't all for Bokuto, not even close, and he felt himself twitch in revulsion as he saw that the... cat-person? Neko? Hadn't been lying. He did indeed have a collar around his neck, done up so tightly it was a wonder he could even breathe at all, and his wrists were scarred with the old stain of manacles. Kuroo let out a hiss between his teeth. Now he had two injured parties to care for, as there was no way in hell he was leaving this guy here to rot. There's no guarantee his 'Master' wouldn't exact retribution on his defenceless slave when he recovered, and Kuroo wasn't willing to take that chance. It was just like Bokuto to jump in and put himself on the line to protect a stranger, Kuroo thought with exasperation.

Letting out a sigh, Kuroo crouched down in front of the Neko and raised his hands to remove the collar, but the other male cringed away, screwing his eyes shut and shielding his face with his arms.

"Hey. I'm not going to hurt you. In fact, I'm getting you out of there. Like hell will I just leave you here to be abused by some sick perverted fuck. Now, I know you're frightened, but I really need to remove this collar, okay? Please trust me."

Swallowing audibly, the Neko hesitated for a moment before nodding, exposing his throat to Kuroo's hands. Kuroo let out a huff of pure anger as the leather circling his neck came away. His throat was rubbed raw and covered in bleeding sores. The collar had been so tight, it had literally begun to slit his throat. Sickened to his core, Kuroo gathered the tiny male up in his arms and approached Kenma, whose eyes widened.

"Who is that, Kuroo?"

Kuroo looked down at the man in his arms, suddenly realising that he didn't even know his name yet. He made to ask, before realising that they'd gone limp, unconscious. "I don't know. But he's been abused, and he needs care. I won't leave him here." Kuroo was suddenly determined. "I can't drive like this. Can you call Tsukishima? I need him to help us out. I can't carry Bokuto as well." His eyes drifted to his boyfriend in concern and he shrugged off his jacket. It took some manoeuvring, but he was able to drape it over his partner as he still cradled the sleeping Neko to his chest.

"He's here, Kuroo. I already called him. That's who I was on the phone with."

Tsukishima had pulled up in Kuroo's car, looking thoroughly annoyed. That look vanished and was replaced with one of worry as he leaped out and hurried to Kuroo's side. "What the hell happened? Why is there a man with... are THOSE EARS? AND A TAIL? And why is Bokuto sleeping on the floor?"

Kuroo groaned at the barrage of questions. Tsukishima wasn't one for chatter, but when he was concerned he didn't know how to shut up.

"I'll tell you everything later, just please. Help me get them into the car."

Tsukishima's mouth snapped shut and he nodded curtly in assent, quickly taking the unconscious Neko from Kuroo's arms and laying him across the back-seat before hopping into the front. Kenma clambered in the passenger side as they waited for Kuroo and Bokuto to join them.

Bokuto was starting to come around as Kuroo wrapped an arm around his waist and pulled him to his feet, dragging him toward the stationary car waiting for them. "Welcome back, babe. Are you doing okay?" Kuroo said softly as he started to help his boyfriend into the car.

"I'm... I'm alright." Bokuto sounded very disoriented. Not a good sign. "Where is the Neko? Is he safe?"

"I'm fine, Bokuto." A quiet voice joined in, and their heads turned so fast it's a wonder they didn't both get whiplash.

"Oh, oh good. I'm glad." Bokuto grinned before immediately keeling over. Kuroo caught him, swearing, and slid into the middle seat, cradling his boyfriend's head on his lap and carting his fingers through his ridiculous hair. He turned to the man beside him, pressed against the window, and was momentarily stunned.

Now that the Neko was under the artificial light of the street instead of tucked in the shadows of a grimy alleyway, Kuroo could see that he was beautiful. There was no other way to describe him. Under all the muck, his features were like porcelain. Kuroo swallowed audibly, distracted, before shaking his head to clear it.

"Hey, listen. What's your name?"

The Neko hesitated before deeming Kuroo trustworthy enough.

He took a deep breath before answering. "I'm Akaashi. Akaashi Keiji."


End file.
